part two...circle of life!

OH man it's been a great couple of days!

A new life.

A beautiful boy.

We are so so excited to welcome the 30th grandchild.

We never get tired of new babies around here.

Congrats Troy and Kristin.

And a life celebrated.

My cute grandpa Dalton. He is 89 years old. A legacy he lives...

Hard working, loyal husband, kind father of 7, farmer of a Walnut orchard in the hills of California, a Grandpa full of strength and laughter.

A man we all love and respect.

It was great to spend two days with him.

Then back to Gridley, CA to his two-story Victorian home with acres and acres of lush fruit, beautiful flowers, and secret gardens.

(trips in the summer were M A G I C A L there.)

We love you Grandpa Dalton!

(and great Grandpa Dalton to my kids)

circle of life

Two great things are happening today:

~My 89 year old Grandpa is in town for a visit.

~AND we are welcoming a brand new baby in the Brown family.

The circle of life. I love this pic..

Isn't it fabulous?!!

(Grandpa Dalton with the girls..2008)

I get to see both of them today.

I wanted a pic of newborns that were NOT mine...

So I chose a pic of my sister Misty with her new twins in 2006!!

I can't wait!

A brand new life just entering this world and

visiting my 89 year old Grandpa who has lived life to the fullest....

The circle of life is a B E A U T I F U L thing.

Good luck K and T! We will be thinking about you!

and see you tonight Grandps!

Loves to both of you!!!

xo,

Tawny

Family Home evening, scripture moment, and busy days

Family Home Evening.

The best.

We try to do it every week. (Monday nights!)

Hard sometimes, yes, but it really brings us together.

and I have found, the kids soak up all our lessons.....kids love to learn.

This week, we focused on Jake's upcoming Baptism!

I bought a book, it talks A to Z about Baptism. The kids love it. We read 5 letters a night. (i.e A is for accountable, B is for Baptism, C is for Choose the Right, D is for Desire, E is for Eternal Covenants....)

Ry and I also presented Jake and Ashlyn with a special gift: (Aus already has his!)

Their very own scriptures with their name inscribed and their own case.

The joy in their smiles and (Ashlyn) with happy tears, made my mama moment again.

We are reading the Book of Mormon together as a family.

Ry and I didn't set our goals to high, a chapter a night.

But last night the kids didn't want to stop and read 3 chapters.

Ashlyn and Jake have already come to us and begged to keep reading...so here we go.

Also, have to speak in our Ward in Feb. Stress! Stress! Stress! The Stott fam the entire hour! Yikes. Anxiety, but hopefully good. The topic: Stewardship to our families, to our neighbors and to one another. Perfect, sounds good.

But it doesn't stop there.....Jake has to speak in Primary and I have to prepare a lesson for my cute, little Sunbeams.

Besides the fact that today we are up to our ears in two science fair projects

and

I am planning Jake's baptism set for 2 weeks, the program, talk, song..etc and plan a big lunch after for the whole family!

Whoa! I swear when it rains, it pours right?!

But grateful that life keeps on giving.

On to homework, Biggest Loser (yes!), scripture reading, and cleaning up dinner!

Have a good crazy week too!

And wish us good luck!

We will need it!

Happy Birthday Jake!

Jake's birthday was magical!

simply magical.

Jake was turning 8!

A big year for him.

He wanted a party with all his friends.

I usually do parties because bdays only come once a year...we have to

celebrate that!

SOme years I do small parties and keep it simple, other years, I let them pick.

And I try to keep it modest every year...

but it's worth letting them feel S P E C I A L on their bday..

it's not to much effort to do that!!

Jake's birthday is in the winter so we have to get

creative with new ideas.

We have done movies, chucky cheese, Jungle Jims, games at our house, etc..

we had to think of something new:

a magician!

We hired him for our ward Christmas party and the kids loved him.

So we called him up for Jake's party:

But

first

I had to decorate the "man cave" with lots and lots of

stars.

***************************************************************

I hung them from the ceiling to create a

"magical feel!"
Mace and the kitty helped me:
(ha not really! had to put kitty away.)

Then I got the "loot bags" all ready and full of

candy.....

I picked up the pinata, the football cake, the icecream, got the
drinks, cups, all the party goods and finally finished it off with balloons.

we were all set.

we were ready for Jake's party!
What's left??

the kids!

Bring on the kiddos:

Hyper and happy....A L L the kids all arrived.... Jake was so happy.

He invited 14 of his best friends:

sports friends, school friends, church friends and cousins!

Once they arrived, we went downstairs

ready for the...

M A G I C I A N~ M A G I C I A N~ M A G I C I A N~ M A G I C I A N~ M A G I C I A N

******************************************************************
He was a hit!

The kids loved him. He gave an hour performance

He had the kids totally entertained!

Lots of fun tricks that kept the kids guessing.

The man cave was perfect for the magic show!

The kids loved it.

And most importantly, Jake loved it.
But I do have to say, the L O U D E S T kid in the whole group...

laughing and laughing....

was

M A C E!
He loved it.

He was hilarious.

He loved the magician...

Mace would yell out to him and laugh on cue.

The magician was eating it up too..

(the kids were hysterical! cute)

After the magician left,

it was time for

cake and icecream.

All the kids ran upstairs.

We gathered around

Jake's football chocolate cake

(with chocolate mousse filling with white buttercream icing. Y U M).

Jake got exactly what he requested...

football field with his name on it.
We lit 8 candles and sang Jake his B I R T H D A Y song.

It was so LOUD.

All the boys gathered around Jake and were jumping on

his back and slappin their buddy.

Telling him Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday!!

With more sugar in their system, we added more!

Pinata time!

We knew every boy couldn't hit the pinanta w/o it breaking,

so Ry stood at the top of the stairs and threw the candy down.

Ummm. a bit dangerous yes!

But the kids loved it and snatched up the candy in no time.

They added the candy to their loot bags and then I handed out the balloons.

THe magician made enough balloon toys for all the kids to enjoy.

He made swords, parrots, party hats, monkeys....the kids loved them.

All the boys did what boys do with balloon swords:

fight!

Then the last thing we did was presents.

Jake sat down and opened all his gifts.

Everybody knew jake well:

4 footballs and 3 nerf guns and star war legos, bakugans, Jenga, cloudy with a chance of meatballs and football games.

Thanks everybody!

What a party we had!

It was such a great day for Jake.

WE are so glad that all his buddies came to help

him celebrate his big day!

Love ya Jakers, xo mom and dad!

On Jakes real birthday (saturday the 23rd.) we hung as a family and celebrated! (always)

Presents, lunch at Pei Wei, Jake's basketball game,

(he scored 40 points in 2 quarters!),

watched Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs,

and played family competitions on the Wii.

He got a Miami Dolphin backpack, Miami Dolphin lunchbox and

Miami Dolphin blanket!

(no surprise there!)

It was a great weekend!

loved putting on the party for you....
Happy Birthday Jakers boy!

guardian angels.

Angels. Guardian Angels.

Yes I do believe in them.

My sister had a guardian angel on Monday.

Yes, her family definitely had an angel watching over Quinn, Lexi, Lani and Amber.



And it's not really my story to tell, but I feel so inclined to say thank you



and to express how grateful I am that she is okay and she has someone watching above.


Two spin offs in the canyon were on the news that day, one fatal and one not.



My sister was driving home from Bear Lake and got in a terrible accident.



She hit black ice, spun in circles and headed straight down a ravine, through a barbed wire fence



and landed front up on a railroad track with her front tires in the air.




Her and the kids buckled tightly, not believing what just happened.



shocked, scared, and cold. They were all okay.




oh. wow. thank goodness.




we get a phone call from Mom, amber is in a wreck,




tears, worry, are they okay?




She said, "down a ravine 250 yards, through a fence and finally landing on the back of the truck with her front tires up in the air!" They were fine, the truck not so much. Oh my, they had a guardian angel that day, no doubt about it. Relief swept through me.




Too many "what if's" were simply put into place that saved all of their lives.

Amber woke up that day "knowing" something was terribly wrong.

Something was not right, she could feel it, she couldn't eat, she was worried.




Told the kids to buckle up tight. asked again and again? Are you buckled.




"Yes mom" and off they go.... down the canyon back to the valley.




Ten minutes past Coleville, black iced formed on the highway.




Her back tires spun out, the car spun back and forth, and down the ravine she went, kids a crying, Amber thinking how much she loved her kids...



But it was a miracle. They were all okay. If they would of went the other direction, they would of hit oncoming traffic, if she would of hit dirt on the ravine instead of straight ice, the car would of flipped tail over end and rolled and rolled. If she had landed 10 ft to the right, she would of fallen into a 20 foot cement drainage well. All of those with fatal endings or serious injury.



She was saved and watched over. We are so grateful.




I told my kids the news that day, we got on our knees that moment and thanked Heavenly Father for their safety. What a day, what a miracle.

The cop that arrived was Niel Ekberg. We grew up with Niel. He was a family friend and Amber was so happy to see his face in that cold ravine. She about hugged him! The tow truck driver who picked her up was my dad's ex girlfriend (yes 50 years ago!) Frankie Jean's brother. He helped her out of the ravine. My dad and Tyler got a call from Amber and sped up the canyon in under an hour. They all came to her aid and they came fast. They were all angels to Amber too.
(Lani, Lexi, and Quinn)

I know every day we are watched over and protected, we may not be able to stop what will happen, but sometimes we are "helped" along the way. What a lesson to all of us.....I am sure grateful for my sister and her guardian angel. Oh how the Stott fam loves Tyler, Amber and their 3 kids...they our best friends! Love ya girl! xo

(The cute Larsen fam! love them!)

overindulgence

My brother who is a surgeon and lives over in Europe

says that candy is virtually exempt from a child's diet.

In fact, it's a rare occasion.

Maybe a piece on their birthday or a very special occasion.

But N E V E R a daily occurrence. Hmmm. wow.

No wonder America is the biggest nation ever.

Man, I sure am not helping the cause:

Here's a pic of the loot for Jake's pinata.

oh man!

I should serve like carrot sticks and broccoli.

Instead I ordered a huge chocolate cake and ice cream.

The Stott's love their treats over here. Especially their B i r t h d a y.

But for reals when I heard that fact, I vowed to try harder.

(and to my credit, I actually think I cook a pretty good 4-course dinner. My oldest eats more than his dad!)

Kids don't need so much junk.

Vitamins, apples, carrot sticks here we come....:)

off to decorate for Jake's party!

Jake

Jake!

It's almost Jake's birthday. In fact, it's a big year. He's turning 8!

Things I love about Jake:
~He loves sports. All kinds of sports. He plays soccer, basketball, football and baseball. Basically anything with a ball. He will try anything. He is fearless.
~He loves to watch sports with his dad and bro's. They go down to the man cave and will watch football and basketball for hours as they throw the football back and forth.
~He can recite sports stats on Dwayne Wade, Miami Dolphins, BYU, Miami Hurricanes. It's crazy how much this 7 yr old knows.
~He loves life. Jake wakes up every day with a huge smile and ready to face the day. His happy attitude always brightens my day.
~He loves friends. He is buddies with his fellow 3rd graders but also the 4th, 5th and 6th graders. He goes up and slaps all the kids on the back with a smile. He knows everyone.
~He has the prettiest brown eyes, thus the nickname "tootsie roll."
~He loves to cheer me up. He used to always call me "my mama beautiful." and gives me hugs.
~He loves pizza, carrots, and peas.
~He does well in school and gets top grades.
~Jake's best friend is his cousin, Lexi and his sports buddy, Ben.
~Jake started indoor soccer when he was 3 and has never stopped. He plays sports year round!
~Jake is super competitive and loves to win! His basketball and soccer team have not lost in 3 years. On the otherhand, Jake has a very sensitive side and is careful of hurting others feelings.
~I feel so blessed to have Jake as part of our family. In ways, he is like the glue, he lifts others around him, his optimism is infectious, and he brings me joy every single day! I love him so much.

Now off to plan for his birthday party tomorrow:

15 kids, a magician, pinata, and games and fun!

my boys.

Boys.

I'm grateful for 3 of them.

Like I have said before, I was a little sad.

I really thought Mace would come out a girl. The perfect Brady Bunch family.

Even numbers. Two boys and two girls! But nope, instead he was my third boy!!

We knew that four was always our magic number.

Our family complete.

B U T, I do have to admit I was worried Ashlyn would have no sister

to share all her girls secrets to, talk about barbies and boys, put

on nail polish and have tea parties.

B U T what I have learned in time, is is that she has me, she has my sisters, (who treat her so sweet) and she has her cousins to love and surround her.

And I love that I get time with JUST her. Ashlyn and I go on lots of mama daughter dates. I love just spending time with her. It's special.

SO I know that our plan was fulfilled, we were destined for three boys and a girl, and I know my family is perfect.

And sometimes I think Mace came down as Ashlyn's other twin too.
Ash thinks its great that he looks just like her.

They share a special bond, Ash loves taking care of her little baby bro. It's sweet because Mace always calls her sis or sissa.

BUT moments like these make me smile.

The other night my boys came down the stairs dressed like this:

Quite typical at the Stott household...

Hulk in his underwear (always)

and Austin dressed up as a power ranger wearing a spidey cape.

They were buds hanging out.

Austin "entertaining" Mace by dressing up and playing with him.

I'm lucky to have 3 boys.

3 boys for the most part, who get along and love to hang out.

Boys play in such a different way then girls do.

They are rough and loud, they love sports, games and toys.

They wrestle, fight and love.

Yup, I feel lucky to have 3 Stott boys.

I am a happy mama.

and yes I don't have another girl, but that's okay.

I feel so blessed to have the family I do.
I do not take that for granted one single day.